Pilgrims flock Panama’s streets with a zeal to share the Gospel

PANAMA CITY — Walking down the busy streets in Panama City, Jenny Trotta has been immersed in the radical hospitality that has been on display from the native Panamanians.

As she and her fellow Archdiocese of Detroit pilgrims make their way through the city, people greet them with smiles, honking their horns, cheering "U.S.A.," cheering for the Church, and cheering for the youth.

“The weather is good and the people are great,” Trotta, a member of St. Jane Frances de Chantal Parish in Sterling Heights, told Detroit Catholic via phone from Panama. “You can just feel the Holy Spirit in everyone; it’s awesome.”

Panama is the first Central American nation to host the triennial gathering of young Catholics from around the world.

World Youth Day began Jan. 22 and runs through Jan. 27, when Pope Francis will celebrate Mass with tens of thousands of Catholics in Cinta Costera, a waterfront gathering space in Panama City.

Throughout the week, pilgrims have been going to Mass, participating in praise and worship events, and attending catechism sessions with bishops from around the world.

But the true essence of World Youth Day is young people meeting other young Catholics from around the world, showing the true universal nature of the faith.

“We’ve been talking with people from other countries, comparing stories,” Trotta said. “We met people from Iceland, which only has 13,000 Catholics there. It’s crazy how small that number is; it shows how much work we have to do around the world. It’s pretty cool to see how alive the Church is, how everyone is excited to be here and share the faith and the Eucharist.”

“We’ve been talking with people from other countries, comparing stories,” Trotta said. “We met people from Iceland, which only has 13,000 Catholics there. ... It’s pretty cool to see how alive the Church is, how everyone is excited to be here and share the faith and the Eucharist.”

World Youth Day is also a gathering of bishops from around the world, who have the chance to give talks and meet young Catholics, encouraging them to boldly embrace their faith and the vocation God is calling them to pursue. 

Detroit Auxiliary Bishop Arturo Cepeda had the opportunity give a talk about “fiat,” the saying “yes” to the will of God, during a Wednesday conference sponsored by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“Mary, during the Annunciation, said, ‘Let it be done according to your word,’” Bishop Cepeda said. “In other words, what we celebrate is being open to the missionary spirit that God is asking from each of us. The theme of this year's World Youth Day is celebrating the saying 'yes' to God’s will.”

In addition to accompanying pilgrims from the Archdiocese of Detroit, Bishop Cepeda traveled with pilgrims from Michigan and Ohio, Region VI, who participated in last fall's Encuentro gatherings. Bishop Cepeda gave a talk on catechesis in one of the celebrations that was geared toward Spanish-speaking Catholics.

Bishop Cepeda is a veteran of World Youth Day, only missing two gatherings in the past 24 years. He said World Youth Day at Denver in 1993 had a profound impact on his priestly vocation.

As a bishop and leader in the Church, Bishop Cepeda said seeing the joy and conviction of so many young Catholics makes him strive to improve in his ministry as a bishop, adding the missionary zeal of today’s youth must be matched with an equal sense of conviction and leadership of the Church’s bishops.

“The sense that God calls all of us to be with Him to celebrate our faith, to celebrate our call and mission, is amazing,” Bishop Cepeda said. “One of the things in my personal life that I’m grateful for and get to experience is to witness to the future of the Church. That energizes my soul as I go back to Detroit, as I go back to proclaim the Gospel, knowing there is hope for the future.”

For the youth attending World Youth Day, the entire week — from walking the streets and meeting the locals, to trying to catch a glimpse of the pope — was about taking each moment God gives you and learning from it. 

"(Going to World Youth Day) has taught me that it is really important to surrender and say, 'This isn't about me,'" said Naim Edwards of St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Detroit. "I think we're more fulfilled, I have more meaning in my life, when I try to do what God wants, instead of trying to follow my own path."

Seeing how Panamanians interact with the pilgrims and with each other, Edwards added that the host country has set an example for the world of what it means to be generous, to be hospitable, and allow God to take care of one's daily needs while serving others around them. 

"I'm so impressed by the hospitality and generosity of the people since we've gotten here," Edwards said. "Almost everything is taken care of. We have host families, and they feed us well. Everywhere we go, you feel welcomed, and it is so accepting. It really makes you see how much you can trust in the Lord to sort things out, knowing He is always blessing us."  

On Thursday evening, Pope Francis arrived at World Youth Day, meeting the crowd at the papal welcoming ceremony at Cinta Costera, where the Holy Father addressed the youth at the event for the first time. 

"We were at the papal welcome, and it took quite a while to get there," said Laura Piccone-Hanchon, associate director of youth ministry for the Archdiocese of Detroit. "It was extremely humbling. The pilgrims needed to stay hydrated and stay positive, standing out in the weather all day to get to where we were going to watch the pope welcome everyone to World Youth Day. 

"The pilgrims from the Archdiocese of Detroit were on fire, so excited to finally see the Holy Father after so many hours, so many days and weeks preparing for this pilgrimage, to finally hear him speak to us," Piccone-Hanchon said. "It was really amazing."

Piccone-Hanchon said a group of 73 people from the Archdiocese of Detroit, including some from the Diocese of Lansing, traveled throughout Panama before the beginning of the formal World Youth Day events. 

When it was time to greet Pope Francis on Thursday, Piccone-Hanchon said the Detroiters, along with tens of thousands of other young people, were instructed by the Holy Father to do what they have been doing all week long in Panama: share the joy that is living the Gospel message. 

"He kept saying, 'You young people, do not be afraid, be passionate,' and he was talking to all these young people in the crowd," Piccone-Hanchon said. "All the young people from America had their radios, listening to the Holy Father speaking so they could hear the translation. The crowds were cheering and waving their hands when Pope Francis said, 'I believe in you; you are the witness to the Gospel. I am empowering you to share the Gospel.'"

Seeing Pope Francis, whether at the welcome ceremony or catching a glimpse of the popemobile down a busy Panamanian street, was the crescendo of a week of events that included tours, prayer vigils, confessions, adoration, catechism and fellowship with Catholics from around the world.

“On Monday and Tuesday, we had catechesis with English-speaking bishops from around the world, talking about a variety of topics, and they opened up the floor to Q-and-A about the faith,” said Tom Turoczi, sacristan at Our Lady of the Rosary Parish in Detroit. “The lessons have been neat because we were in the sessions with Americans, Icelandics, Poles, Greeks, Filipinos and Brits, so it was really neat to interact and see their faith and our faith.

“I was talking to this one pilgrim from Denmark, who is discerning religious life, and he was telling us about all the American Catholic speakers he follows and the impact it had on him,” Turoczi added.

Turoczi said there was an episode when the Detroit pilgrims were walking down a street wearing their bright yellow-green Archdiocese of Detroit World Youth Day Shirts, which read “Luke 1:38,” when a native asked the group what the passage meant.

“Patrick (Howard, liaison for young adult ministry for the Archdiocese of Detroit) just belted it right out, saying this is what the Gospel is and what it means,” Turoczi said. “The guy said it was amazing, telling us he had his Bible at home. He was saying, ‘God bless you and enjoy your time in Panama.’ We were unleashing the Gospel here in the streets.”

Throughout the week, even the bishops who were giving catechism lessons, celebrating Masses or hearing confessions had moments of encounter with the locals.

Detroit Auxiliary Bishop Donald Hanchon, traveling with Detroit-area pilgrims, said the Panamanians have gone out of their way to welcome people from around the world. 

One local, knowing the connection the Detroiters have with Blessed Solanus Casey, gave Bishop Hanchon and Bishop Cepeda buttons depicting the Detroit saint.

"There is a connection, of course, with Detroit and Panama, because the woman who received the miracle for Fr. Solanus' beatification (Paula Medina Zarate) is Panamanian," Bishop Hanchon said. "They are renovating the cathedral in Panama City, and there is going to be a shine to Fr. Solanus."

"There is a connection, of course, with Detroit and Panama, because the woman who received the miracle for Fr. Solanus' beatification (Paula Medina Zarate) is Panamanian," Bishop Hanchon said. "They are renovating the cathedral in Panama City, and there is going to be a shine to Fr. Solanus."

Returning from a catechism session, Bishop Hanchon recalled meeting a man who felt reignited in his faith because Panama was hosting World Youth Day, recalling a passage in Scripture that stirred something in his soul.

"It is very inspiring when you have an encounter that really moves people," Bishop Hanchon said. "Today I met a man who was standing with us (Bishop Cepeda and himself), and he requested our picture because he saw our pectoral crosses. He then started sharing his experience; how he wasn't connected to the parish for many years and was lonely. 

"He said, 'I thought I was free, but I read somewhere in the Scriptures that if you sin, you are a prisoner to sin.' He said that opened his eyes, saying he didn't want to be a prisoner to sin," Bishop Hanchon continued. "You could see the passion and the light of fire in his eyes, how much he loved his faith." 

More photos

To view more photos of local pilgrims' experiences at World Youth Day in Panama, visit the Archdiocese of Detroit's Facebook page.